PORTSMOUTH — Caleb Paterson’s first game as Portsmouth High School boys soccer coach didn’t result in a victory, but he still left the field satisfied.

The Clippers adapted to their new system quickly, resulting in Zach Hansler’s goal midway through the first half. Oyster River’s Aidan Conrad tied the game in the second half and the teams went scoreless through two overtimes for a 1-1 deadlock in Division II action at Tom Daubney Field.

“I think overall it was a good start to the season,” Paterson said. “We had to get the cobwebs out because we hadn’t had a scrimmage in the preseason quite to the standard that Oyster River brought tonight. It’s not a loss, so we’ll take it.”

Oyster River (1-0-1) began the season with a 2-1 win over St. Thomas Aquinas last Friday.

“Portsmouth has a lot of seniors and you can tell they’re well organized,” Oyster River coach Charlie Crull said. “They played a better first half, but we definitely picked up our play in the second half and I was happy about that.”

The Clippers (0-0-1) controlled play from the start and took advantage with 18:42 left in the first half. Carter Madden’s shot was stopped by Oyster River goalkeeper Jon Dutka (eight saves), but Hansler punched home the rebound to make it 1-0.

Oyster River tied the game with 16 minutes left in regulation. After a scrum ensued in front of the net, Portsmouth goalie Thomas Adler (eight saves) was caught out of position and Conrad poked the ball past him.

“It just bobbled around off a couple players; it was an accidental goal,” Adler said. “I’ve got to make sure to keep stuff like that out of the net, but sometimes they get lucky with it.”

The Bobcats might have won the game if Adler hadn’t come up with two big saves in the second half. The first came early in the stanza when he stretched out to stop Conrad’s shot. The second came with eight minutes left, when Ben Freid crossed a pass to Bryce Schultz, whose one-timer was nabbed by Adler.

“I told (Adler) before the game that the goalkeepers need to make two or three big plays, especially against a team like Oyster River,” Paterson said. “He was our MVP for this evening, without a doubt.”

Portsmouth had the best opportunities to win the game in extra time, as Hansler’s shot inched its way over the crossbar two minutes into the first overtime. Cooper Valinski hit the post from 30 yards out four minutes later.

Crull said his team moved better off the ball in the second half. He credited defenders Neil Thomas and Colby Runk for keeping Portsmouth in check.

“I thought we had a much better team effort in the second half in terms of pressure,” Crull said. “I loved the way (Schultz) and (Griffin Luczek) were putting pressure on the ball. It was a totally different tempo in the second half.”

Both teams are in action on Friday, as Portsmouth hosts Hollis-Brookline and the Bobcats travel to John Stark.